“I have been cooking barbeque for 8 years. I am a plumber, but I do this for fun. On my birthday, my wife asked me what I wanted. I had just built a new grill and told my wife I wanted to be in the Hog Wild barbeque competition. That was the first contest I ever cooked in and I have been cooking ever since. I didn’t know what I was doing, but now I compete 10 to 15 times a year all over Alabama. Butts and briskets take 10 hours to cook. Ribs take about 4. I have special sauces and seasonings that I figured out by trial and error. We won the Jack Daniel’s World Championship last year. It is invitation only and people come from around the world–from Japan, England, and Australia. That is the biggest one in the world and I was surprised, but it felt great to win. The very next contest we came in last. You never know what the judges are going to like. It might be too hot and spicy one day and not hot or spicy enough the next. I have learned to stick with what I do and cook it the way I like it because when it is over, the leftovers go home with me.”